hi, im having a little bit of trouble creating a user account in redhat linux 7.1
i got redhat with a bookcalled the linux bible and the book is sometimes a bit patchy on what im meant to be actually doing...

ive added the username in the /etc/passwd file and have set up home and such, got most of the login files there, but cant find the .login file and another one i cant remember

ive done this all under the root account of course and then logged out to see if the account worked, but i would try to log in and the screen would go blank and return me to the login screen.

i tried to use the GUI method to make the account but couldnt find the linuxconf utility on the menu's anywhere

the actual account name is called 'user', im not sure if this is the problem as when i try to make a password i get some sort of validation table error and the password doesnt change.

the entry in /etc/passwd is something like (sketchy details as the box is in another town)
user::500:501: user:/home/user:/usr/user

something lke that i think, any clarification or help would be great as i'm fairly new to linux and want to learn a few things like setting up a internet connection with linux as a firewalland other stuff

October 18th, 2002, 12:36 PM

unixjim

hey mate,

fire up the old terminal and 'su' it

type 'adduser mrleachy' (replace the mrleachy part with nething you want)

then type 'passwd mrleachy' (the same deal as above, replace the mrleachy with the account name)

you will be propted to type in a password and then re-type it for clarity

I hope that helps, Mr Leachy

(Actually, ill write a tutorial on CLI user accounts)

Later,

October 18th, 2002, 12:36 PM

the_JinX

in most linuxes there is a small script called adduser

realy simple (command line based) wich asks you all the nescesary info and sets up the user account.

That's what I do..

October 18th, 2002, 01:02 PM

mrleachy

thanx for the tips guys, wasnt expecting such a quick response, it makes everything so much more simple instead of having to go through 20 or so pages that lead me down the wrong track anyway :rolleyes:

October 18th, 2002, 01:27 PM

black_death

User data and group information are traditionally stored in two files: /etc/passwd and /etc/group . The /etc/passwd file stores usernames, encrypted passwords, real names, and other user information. The /etc/group file stores group information and lists the groups of which the user is a member.

There are several methods you can use to add a user. The first, and probably the most difficult, is to make an entry in the /etc/passwd file (and /etc/group , if necessary) for the new user. The passwd entry looks something like this:

markk:0QLp0ZyXo.shE:500:500:Mark F. Komarinski:/home/markk:/bin/tcsh

To enter a new user, simply add your own line. Replace the entire encrypted field with an asterisk ( * ) or some other character. Be sure the UID is unique. Now, create the home directory for the user you entered, copy files from /etc/skel to the home directory, and chown all the files in the home directory to the new user. Once the user exists, give the user a password by using the command as root:

passwd markk

Assuming that markk is the UID you created, this will put a valid encrypted password in the passwd field, and the user can now log in. The first thing the new user should do is change his password.

i do not have time to go over Using Shadow Passwords... sorry i hope this helps
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